24 Hours in Abysus
by Bramblerose4
Summary: While on a day out, Rex and Noah are suddenly transported to Abysus and Rex's nanites aren't working. Now, they have to do their best to stay off of Van Kleiss and the Pack's radar while they wait for Providence to find them. Establishing Noex.
1. Chapter One

This is an idea that I have been working on for a while now. I was planning on posting this as a long one-shot, but I am not known for my patience, so I am posting this in smaller parts. Enjoy!

 **24 Hours in Abysus**

 **Chapter One**

Only one thing had mattered to me this morning and that was making sure Noah had a great time. It seemed like a simple goal, and so far, one I was achieving. We spent the afternoon at the bookstore until we got kicked out for making too much noise when we geeked out over the newest comic book releases.

Skip ahead a few hours and we were hanging out at the batting range, trying to outscore each other's batting averages when things turned sour.

A red and black portal appeared at the ballpark and sucked us into this happy go lucky place, and now my mission was to do everything I could to get us home alive.

My first move was to build my hover-copter and fly away like a bat outta hell. Midway through the build, it all fell apart as pain ripped through my back, surrounding me in broken metal.

Okay, so my nanites weren't cooperating was when I needed them most. Perfect.

My next move became contacting Providence. But when we landed we were dumped into the river instantly killing our phones. That left us with one option; the communication link that was in my ear. But I was having trouble establishing a line that wasn't full of static, so instead of broadcasting our location to the Pack, I pressed the emergency button in my ear cuff notifying Providence I needed help.

The thing beeped for five full minutes. Five minutes should have been long enough to send my location. It had to be. Because it's all the time I felt comfortable letting it go before I used what little power my nanites had to drain the ear cuff's battery, silencing the signal before it could be traced by Van Kleiss's people. The plan was to reactivate it when we were at a more secure place, which was turning out to be difficult to find.

Hopefully, I would see something soon. I had no way of knowing when Providence would show up; if they were coming at all.

No, I couldn't think that way. They would come. They had to. Once, they had sent a whole platoon to Abysus to save me, surely they would do it again.

Wouldn't they?


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

We were deep in the forests of Abysus, chilling up a tree like we were hiding from a curious bear. If only. It was so tempting to build something, like my sword, and just go after the Pack until they were knocked senseless or I was. That was my usual way, the status quo, but I couldn't do that this time around, because they hadn't just kidnapped me (again) they had snagged Noah, too (again.)

And I was totally not okay with that.

I still planned on beating the livin' snot outta the Pack, but only after I was sure Noah was far, far away from here.

I wasn't afraid of what was out there. I'd faced worse enemies and come out on top. No, what scared me was the guy sitting next to me. If anything happened to Noah…

The possibility was so unimaginable that I couldn't even picture what things would look like without Noah around. Well, I could, but I wasn't going to because nothing was going to happen to him.

Not unless something unpleasant happened to me first.

No. Stop that. Veto all bad thoughts. I imagined a big bright red X flashing over my darker thoughts and nearly made me laugh. I shook my head. Focus. This isn't about me. It's about Noah.

Noah.

He was curled up asleep next to me. Silent, shivering from the cold, or maybe that was fear, it was difficult to tell in the dark. I was just glad he wasn't snoring. The sun had set an hour ago, taking all its warmth with it. The lack of heat didn't get to me nearly as much as Noah. Being as careful not to jostle him, I tugged off my jacket and slung it around him, trying to place it in a way that would cover as much of him as it could. I resisted the urge to wrap an arm around him and share some of my body heat because that'd cross some bro-code line. And I knew I wouldn't live it down if he caught me holding him like that.

My stomach gurgled uncomfortably. I rubbed small circles over it in a sad attempt to settle it. I knew nothing would quiet it until I ate something, but that wasn't going to happen soon. Neither of us had eaten since breakfast. With nothing but a candy bar and half a pack of gum for food, our supplies were nonexistent. We dare not drink or eat anything here. We couldn't trust anything to not make us sick or alert Van Kleiss to our presence. Maybe that was a little bit too far on the paranoid side, but I'd rather be a little hungry than a guest of Van Kleiss's mansion du horror. The longer we stayed out here with any hint of the Pack the clearer it became that we hadn't been forced here for some plot of Van Kleiss's. He wouldn't have allowed us to roam free for so long without being intercepted, and except for the indigenous wildlife, we hadn't encountered anyone.

Which narrowed the reason for our abduction to the whims of my least liked Pack member, Breach. There was no telling why she had summoned us here. I could spend all night thinking up reasons and I still couldn't begin to understand her and I had no desire to find out.

I should probably try to get some rest myself, but funnily enough, I was too wired to sleep.

Plus, I had to keep watch in case there was any sign of Van Kleiss or his Pack. With care, I inched myself to sit up straighter. It wouldn't go well for us if we were captured because hadn't been able to keep my eyes open and my guard up. And if I wasn't going to sleep anytime soon, I may as well keep the first watch.

I checked the area. I didn't see any EVOs nearby, but that didn't mean there weren't around. It would be foolish to think that Van Kleiss didn't have his spies out. Even if they weren't actively searching for us, we had to assume they were out there. They could be standing right beside us and we would never know it. We were on their home turf and there's nothing like having the home field advantage. It didn't mean I was going to make it easy for them to win. Especially since a win for them meant the losers got eaten, or worse had to sit through a Van Kleiss monolog.

I shivered at the thought and then shook my head to clear it. It was going to be a long night, I didn't have to make it longer by thinking things could be worse. The universe had a strange way of making those kinds of thoughts come true. So instead, I thought about how many slices of pizza I was going to shove into my face once I was home.

* * *

I was aware of Noah's return to consciousness before he was fully awake. I quickly dropped my arm when I felt him stir next to me.

"What time is it?"

"I don't know. You've been asleep for a few hours, I think," I answered, my voice rough from lack of use. I didn't bother to clear it in case it attracted the wrong kind of attention.

I didn't need to look at him to know he was becoming angry with me, I could feel the heat of his anger on my neck.

"I didn't mean to sleep so long. Why didn't you wake me?"

"You needed it," I knew that I'd made a huge mistake when I said that.

"And you don't? Did you get any sleep at all?"

"I'm not tired," I said looking out over the tree lines, wondering if anything was being drawn to our location. Noah wasn't exactly keeping his voice down. With all the noise we were making I wouldn't be surprised if we were jumped by Van Kleiss's goons right about now.

"Do you expect me to believe that bull? You should have let me take a watch so you could have built up your strength so maybe you could have the energy to use your nanites and get us out of here!"

Even though he had a point about me not being able to build anything my other EVO abilities were working just fine. I was just about to argue my heightened senses were better suited for keeping watch when I heard a distant crack sound out behind me.

"What no comeback?"

"Sssh," I hissed and turned my head until my ear was in the direction of the sound. I was hoping to pinpoint where the sound originated before whatever made it snuck up on us.

Noah must have seen the seriousness of my expression since my command for silence was obeyed. He even went so far as to cover his mouth the both his hands. Even though I was facing him my attention was squarely focused on the outcropping of trees. There was the crinkling rustle of dry leaves shaking on their branches and whatever was distributing the relative peace of the forest was headed straight for us.


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

We had to move.

The smart thing to do was to stay where we had activated the comm link, so when Providence finally showed up we would be nearby, but with an unknown number of enemies advancing toward us it would be impossible to stay here anymore. We would run and hide for now but return once the coast was clear.

I nudged Noah's shoulder with mine. He started, and besides the sharp intake of air, he didn't make a sound. He looked down and noticed my jacket and wordlessly pulled it off and returned it to me. I tugged it on and then held out both hands. I pointed to myself and then to him. I opened my left hand, palm up. With my right, I placed my index and middle fingers in the middle of the left and then make them hop off and then pointed to into the distance in front of us. He grimaced but nodded in understanding.

I zipped all the way up to my chin and then motioned for Noah to do the same with his. It would provide some cover in case one of the creatures managed to swipe at one of us. It was poor protection and would do little to keep the creatures from attacking us, but it was better than having our skin exposed.

Once I was sure Noah's coat was closed I held up my hand again, this time I had three fingers up. "On three," I mouthed.

One.

Two.

Three.

I jumped down and sucked on my teeth as a shockwave of pain shot through my legs. I had misjudged the distance, hitting my knees hard on the ground.

Noah did a better job. He lowered himself off the branch closing the distance between himself and the ground, and then gently dropped down next to me. The second I heard him land I jumped to my feet, grab his hand, and we were running.

* * *

What I thought were several winged EVOs ended up being three. Even at this distance, I could tell they were massive. With wingspans longer than my height they flew and flew fast. The vulture-like creatures had no problem hunting down its prey which at this moment included me and Noah. They dove as one giant EVO, gathering speed as they spiraled towards us.

"Run!" I shouted spurring Noah on. I tried to gather my nanites but nothing formed. I was too worn out. Even if I could have built something it would have broken apart at the slightest touch and left Noah and me completely defenseless. I was going to have to rely on my other skills to keep us alive.

The forests of Abysus was a desolate place.

I didn't know where we were going only that we needed to get there fast. I held my forearm arm up as I ran using it as a batting ram as I tore through bushes and brambles uncaring of the damage it did to the sleeve of my jacket. There was a clearing where the treeline broke. The ground appeared flat for a dozen meters or so before a tightly packed copse of trees sprung up. If we could make it we had a chance to escape. It would be harder for the beasts to get at us. As the clearing drew closer I pulled Noah ahead of me. "There!" I shouted pointing to the treeline and I let go of Noah's hand. We would be at our most vulnerable here. We had to run like mad.

A screech rent the air, the only warning I had that something bad was about to happen. Instinctively, I ducked as talons the length of my head scraped past me. Too late did I realize I wasn't the target-

"Noah." I was barely able to say his name, but it was loud enough to distract him long enough to cause Noah to trip over his feet, giving those talons the moment they needed to wrap around his torso, lifting him into the air.

I reached out to him trying to bring him back down to earth. My hands met air and Noah called out to me, twisting in the EVO's claws in a panicked attempt to loosen their hold.

Without thinking my nanites activate and my right hand started to transform. I started after Noah barely aware what my nanites were forming. I didn't care what it was as long as it gave me the power to save Noah. A blade to form even as my strength leeched out of my body. It wasn't enough. the metal broke apart before it was half formed. I crumbled to my knees and screamed in frustration as the build shattered around me. I picked up a jagged piece feeling it bite through my gloves to my skin as I tightened my grip around it. There wasn't enough time to do the math. I took aim and prayed that I had judged the distance correctly and hurled the makeshift spear at the creature. There was a roar of protest as it sunk into the creature's flesh. But it was enough to make it release Noah. He landed on his side with a sickening crunch and groaned in pain, clutching his shoulder. Exhausted as I was I gathered up chunks of jagged metal and continued to throw pieces of my broken build at them whenever one swooped down and try to claim Noah for their own.

A blade to form even as my strength leeched out of my body. It wasn't enough. I wasn't strong enough to keep the nanite active long enough to stabilize. The metal broke apart before it was half formed. I crumbled to my knees and screamed in frustration as the build shattered around me. I picked up a jagged piece feeling it bite through my gloves to my skin as I tightened my grip around it. There wasn't enough time to do the math. I took aim and prayed that I had judged the distance correctly and hurled the makeshift spear at the creature. There was a roar of protest as it sunk into the creature's flesh. But it was enough to make it release Noah. He landed on his side with a sickening crunch and groaned in pain, clutching his shoulder. Exhausted as I was I gathered up chunks of jagged metal and continued to throw pieces of my broken build at them whenever one swooped down and try to claim Noah for their own.

I saved the biggest piece for last, making sure I had it to defend the both of us as made my way over to Noah. I stood over Noah and took a deep breath before letting out the loudest roar I could muster mimicking their sounds at best I could. I snarled at them and bared my teeth at them, doing whatever I could do to communicate that Noah was mine and it would be a mistake to challenge me for him. To my surprise and utter relief they relented. With a great show of beating their wings, they flew into the air in search for a new meal. No predator wanted prey that bit back.

Noah groaned behind me. I think I made it two steps before realizing I was no longer at eye level with him. I don't remember falling but one moment I was stumbling towards Noah and the next my vision swam. When I was able to focus again all I could see was the night sky and Noah with his brows furrowed in worry and fear. Seeing him relaxed me. If he was able to worry about me he couldn't have been injured too badly in the fall.

"Noe," I breathed, it took more effort than it should have to raise my arm. I was just so tired. Napping would be a bad idea, but I was too weak to resist the pull of sleep. Maybe it would be okay for me to catch a few z's. The second I thought it my eyelids fell shut and I knew no more.


End file.
